Sanja Bozic, James Kennell, Miroslav D. Vujicic and Tamara Jovanovic
The purpose of this paper is to develop a new perspective on urban tourist motivations by applying the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model to help to understand how tourists…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop a new perspective on urban tourist motivations by applying the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model to help to understand how tourists make decisions about which destinations to visit.
Design/methodology/approach
This study was based on 30 one-hour-long structured interviews with visitors to Ljubljana, the capital city of Slovenia. Respondents were asked to express their preferences between different pull-factor motives for their visit, using Saaty’s scale, and further qualitative data were collected to examine these preferences in more depth.
Findings
The results of this study indicate that the most relevant criteria and thus predominant factors in motivation for visits to Ljubljana are the Cultural and Nightlife pull factors, while religious and business motives are the lowest ranked factors. The paper argues that the results show the value of applying the AHP model to understand the role of pull factors in urban tourism destination choice.
Research limitations/implications
As a single-destination case study, it is important that the findings of this research are evaluated against similar studies in other cities. A limitation of this research is the fact that sub motives within major groups of pull-factor motives have not been explored in this study and this should be the subject of future, more detailed research.
Originality/value
This research shows the value of applying an under-used methodology to understand urban tourist motivations and knowledge gained through applying this method will be of value to destination marketing organisations as well as to researchers conducting future studies.
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Sanja Božić and Tamara Jovanović
This study examines how travel-related patterns of behavior on Facebook (FB) differ among users of different gender, age, and education. The authors assumed that females, young…
Abstract
This study examines how travel-related patterns of behavior on Facebook (FB) differ among users of different gender, age, and education. The authors assumed that females, young, and more educated people are more active in using FB for travel-related purposes and that the results will show a significant difference in their travel-related behavior patterns. Data about respondent’s travel-related behavior on FB were collected through an online survey (Google Docs) through the FB page named “The research on behaviors of FB users.” The study applies the multivariate general linear model (GLM) on the data collected from the total of 793 respondents. The results show that travel-related statuses respondents post on FB are generally about their travel destination. The main findings indicate that women, more educated, and older people are the ones who are the most active in sharing their travel-related information and are therefore target groups for promoting travel destinations via electronic word of mouth (eWOM). The study suggests target groups for promoting travel destinations via eWOM and it is the first research of this type done on a Serbian sample.
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This chapter aims to explore relationship between individual values and holiday preferences. Values as standards of assessing behaviors are often used in tourism research and have…
Abstract
This chapter aims to explore relationship between individual values and holiday preferences. Values as standards of assessing behaviors are often used in tourism research and have been connected to tourists’ behaviors and activities preferences. In this chapter, Schwartz Value Survey (Schwartz, 1992) was used to determine individual values. Holiday preferences were evaluated on a Likert scale using two separate lists: types of destination (e.g., seaside, city) and forms of holiday (e.g., local, short). Sample consisted of 120 university students in Serbia. Results show that there is a correlation between values and holiday preferences. Implications are further discussed in the chapter.
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Jovana Čikić and Tamara Jovanović
The neo-endogenous approach to rural development puts great importance on territorialization, and aligns with place-based strategies and with microentrepreneurship because both…
Abstract
The neo-endogenous approach to rural development puts great importance on territorialization, and aligns with place-based strategies and with microentrepreneurship because both concepts consider local specificities and leveraging local resources. This chapter analyzes characteristics of rural tourism establishments in Vojvodina, Northern Province of Serbia, of which the majority are microenterprises. The discussion focuses on aspects of microenterprise functioning such as human capital, offers, revenues, and non-material benefits. The aim is to analyze the local embeddedness of rural tourism microenterprises and their contribution to neo-endogenous rural development. Our results reveal that microentrepreneurs are embedded in rural places, but they face numerous constraints which in turn limits the benefits host communities might receive from place-based rural tourism development.
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Tinde Kovacs Cerovic, Jadranka Ivkovic, Mónika Kapás and Evgeny Ivanov
Key international and intergovernmental organizations assess the size of the Roma population in Serbia to be around 4–600.000, rendering Serbia among the five countries in Europe…
Abstract
Key international and intergovernmental organizations assess the size of the Roma population in Serbia to be around 4–600.000, rendering Serbia among the five countries in Europe with the highest percentage of Roma population. Although Roma in Serbia have a long history of self-organization, cultural and media organizations, and are formally recognized as national minorities with a National Council of the Roma National Minority as a body with political decision-making influence, the Roma community in Serbia, as in most other European countries, is the most disadvantaged and underprivileged group in the country, often living in underdeveloped neighbourhoods with limited access to social services, especially education and health.
The educational attainment of the Roma population in Serbia, as in other countries in Europe, is far below the attainment of the general population. The education indicators are showing a developing trend, albeit slow. Roma integration policies evolved in Serbia from the early 2000s in the general policy framework of Equity of Education and Inclusive Education and a comprehensive education reform agenda, promoted and legally endorsed by the 2009 Law on the Foundations of the Education System. As the consequence of such an approach, the Roma integration policies intertwined and mutually reinforced with other reform policy areas. The most important post-2000 policies supporting the integration of Roma students into education are the introduction of pedagogical assistants in elementary schools and preschool institutions as a profession, paid from the budget, abolishing the system of school readiness assessment, introducing individual education plans and intensifying affirmative action and scholarships for enrolment in secondary and tertiary education.
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Betty Amos Begashe, John Thomas Mgonja and Salum Matotola
This study aims to explore the connection between demographic traits and the choice of attraction patterns among international repeat tourists.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore the connection between demographic traits and the choice of attraction patterns among international repeat tourists.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed a questionnaire survey to collect data from 1550 international repeat tourists who visited Tanzania between November 2022 and July 2023. Convenient sampling was employed as tourists were selected from the three international airports of Tanzania, namely Kilimanjaro International Airport, Julius Nyerere International Airport, and Abeid Aman Karume International Airport. A multinomial logistic regression model was used to examine the impact of socio-demographic characteristics on the selection of attraction patterns among international repeat tourists.
Findings
The study revealed that demographic factors, including age, marital status, income level, occupation, and education level, exhibit statistically significant correlations with preferences for distinct attraction patterns. This significance was established through a p-value of less than 0.05 for all the aforementioned variables.
Research limitations/implications
This study is primarily focused on international repeat tourists, thereby limiting insights into the preferences of domestic tourists. To better inform strategies aimed at attracting a larger domestic tourist base, future research may prioritize the investigation of choice of attractions patterns among domestic tourists in relation to their demographic characteristics.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the nuanced understanding of international tourist behavior by unraveling the extent to which demographic traits impact tourists’ choices of attraction patterns, thereby providing insights crucial for effective marketing strategies, improved visitor experiences, and sustainable tourism development strategies.